Tower Of Lonhro Outside 2015 Kingston Town Classic Hope

Lark Hill trainer Adam Durrant saddles-up two chances in the Kingston Town Classic 2015 with stablemates Real Love and Tower Of Lonhro installed at opposite ends of the betting markets for the weight-for-age clash.

The stable’s Perth Cup winning mare Real Love, to be ridden by Chris Parnham, pays $7.50 through Ladbrokes.com.au to win the $1 million Group 1 Kingston Town Classic (1800m) at Ascot Racecourse and add to her gun record at the track.

The five-year-old Desert King mare, looking to break a lengthy drought going back to 1999 for the female gallopers in the Perth Summer Racing Carnival, has had 12 previous Ascot runs for five wins, three seconds and two thirds.

She won the Group 3 Asian Beau Stakes (1400m) first-up on October 31 with William Pike aboard before getting caught back and failing to finish off in a race that didn’t suit the backmarkers when seventh to Good Project in the Group 1 Railway Stakes (1600m) a fortnight ago with Damien Oliver in the saddle.

Both Pike and Oliver are engaged to ride different Kingston Town Classic hopes this weekend jumping in the saddle of Perfect Reflection and Magic Artist respectively, leading to the booking of Parnham who has his third ride in the race.

Grant Williams’ unbeaten three-year-old Perfect Reflection is second pick in Kingston Town Classic betting at behind German import Magic Artist to become the first filly in history to win the 1800m showdown.

Also coming out of a Railway Stakes run from November 21, a race that has produced five of the past seven Kingston Town Classic winners, for Durrant is his Lonhro seven-year-old Tower Of Lonhro.

The gelding is at a roughies’ price in the Kingston Town Classic odds paying $81 for the upset sitting above only the Graeme Ballantyne-trained Belmont Classic winner Dark Musket ($101) and Jeff Noske’s Kalgoorlie Cup winning Blackfriars seven-year-old Woodsville ($151) in the markets for the final field of 16 acceptors.

A winner of 13 of his 37 starts to date with successful form up to 2100m, Tower Of Lonhro hasn’t won since securing three straight wins from April 25 – May 23.

He backed up from that hat-trick with two thirds behind Fuchsia Bandana at Belmont in the winter in the Group 3 Hyperion Stakes (1600m) and the Group 3 Strickland Stakes (2000m) when beaten only half a length and a length respectively.

This time in he returned in the Asian Beau Stakes when seventh of eight runners behind his winning stablemate Real Love before improving on November 14 for a third to fellow Kingston Town Classic hopeful Hazzabeel in the Group 3 RJ Peter Stakes (1500m).

He then ran in the Railway Stakes with Peter Hall, who reunites with dual Group 1 winner in South Australia Delicacy this weekend, guiding him to a well beaten 11th.

In the Kingston Town Classic Joseph Azzopardi replaces Hall in the saddle of Tower Of Lonhro having his fifth ride on the horse.

He rode him for two of his wins earlier this year as well as the two Group 3 thirds in June.

While the bookies don’t race Tower Of Lonhro a livewire chance, Durrant is as happy with his lead-up work as he is with that of the better fancied Real Love.

“They has come through their last run really well and their work has been really good,” Durrant told Racing Ahead on Tuesday.

“They had their hard gallop this morning.”

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